


as long as the stars are above you, i will love you

by ericaismeg



Series: stiles/derek ficlets [11]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Engaged Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Hale Family Feels, Lydia Martin & Stiles Stilinski Friendship, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Matchmaker Cora Hale, Matchmaker Laura, OC Grandmother - Freeform, Past Lydia Martin/Stiles Stilinski, Sheriff Stilinski & Stiles Stilinski Feels, Sheriff Stilinski's Name is John, Stilinski Family Feels, The Proposal AU, fake engagement
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-17
Updated: 2015-08-17
Packaged: 2018-04-15 03:10:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4590777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericaismeg/pseuds/ericaismeg
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Proposal AU no one asked for.</p><p>Four years ago, Stiles started working with Mr. Hale, and in that time, he's never hated another person as much. Suddenly, he's being pulled into a meeting room and being asked about their engagement or else Mr. Hale will be deported. Stiles can't afford to lose Derek now, so off to Beacon Hills they go for his grandmother's 90th birthday. </p><p> <i>Oh boy, pretending to be engaged to the boss he's hated for years is going to be tough, especially when he realizes he doesn't hate him at all. Not one little bit.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	as long as the stars are above you, i will love you

**Author's Note:**

  * For [citymusings](https://archiveofourown.org/users/citymusings/gifts).



> You _will_ notice that there are lines from this directly out of the movie, and for that, all of the credit goes to those awesome people who created The Proposal. I do _not_ take credit for that. And I obviously don't take credit for the Teen Wolf characters. Basically, this is a boring disclaimer and I'm not sure why you're still reading this!
> 
> The title is based on lyrics from Ellie Goulding. Tweaked a little bit. To be quite honest, the title doesn't have a play anywhere within this fic. I just think they're pretty words.
> 
> Also! Also! I have gifted this to [citymusings on tumblr/ao3](http://www.citymusings.tumblr.com) BECAUSE I OWE YOU SOME WRITING! It's not quite 20k, and it's not what you asked for AT ALL. But I hope that you enjoy it and I can make up the other approx. 6k in another ficlet for you?! I haven't forgotten darling!

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

The sun hits Stiles’ eyes and he squeezes them shut.  _Ugh._  Sunlight. Too bright, too--Stiles’ brain snaps awake and he sits up in his bed.  _No, no, no._  He shoves his blanket off him and then looks at his alarm clock. It’s flashing 12 o’clock.  _Fuck._

Stiles scrambles around, getting out of the door in three minutes. He barely manages to pull on his shoes before he’s locking the door behind him. He shouts a quick hello to his nosy neighbour as he passes her open door and then he’s down the stairs.

Fuck, if he doesn’t have Mr. Hale’s coffee in his hand by the time he walks into the office, he’s  _so_  fired. That’s how the last assistant went - at least, that’s the story Danny tells. Danny isn't known for lying. He almost crashes into someone as he runs into the coffee shop.

Heather, with her bright smile, waves him up to the cash despite the fact that twelve people are standing in line. “Stiles! Stiles, I have your order.”

“You have my order?” he says, breathless.

“I figured you’d be late. Pay tomorrow, okay?” she says. He feels relief flood through him and leans forward to kiss her cheek.

“You are amazing, Heather.” Stiles is rushing out the door when he shouts, “The absolute best!”

He owes her big time. She’s the only reason he’s going to make it to work on time. Stiles remembers when he was a huge klutz in high school. Now, after working under Mr. Hale, he’s skilled at dodging people as he runs through the crowd with two cups. No longer is he a mess. He’s organized, even about the smallest details. It's a skill no one thought he'd have.

Granted, his personal life could use some work. It’s hard to find time to do anything when Mr. Hale is so demanding. Stiles doesn’t like to linger on the thoughts though.

He zips past some people in the lobby and makes it into the elevator. He squeezes between some men and a small girl. Stiles only shares a tight smile before he bounces out onto his floor.

“Morning, morning, morning,” he says to those he passes as he swoops around the cubicles.

Stiles takes a sharp turn around the last cubicle before Mr. Hale’s office door and crashes into Danny. Only one coffee spills all over him; hot and burning.  _Ow, ow, ow!_

“Danny!” Stiles says as if it’s a curse word. He steps back and looks down at the damage. “Fuck, fuck, if Mr. Hale sees this, I’m fired. We have six meetings today. Give me your shirt.”

“What? I mean, I’m sorry I bumped into you, but I’m not giving you  _my shirt.”_  Danny shakes his head.

Stiles raises his eyebrows. “Danny, give me your shirt or do you want me to tell Mr. Hale where you took our latest client to seal the deal?”

Of course, it works like a charm. Danny’s stripping his shirt off and Stiles is unbuttoning his. Danny had taken Jackson Whittemore to a gay strip club. He swears it’d been by accident - his friend, Mason, had been telling him about this new hot bar. Danny had suggested it without looking into it further. Luckily, Jackson had been into the gay bar.  Stiles hadn’t meant to file it away to use as blackmail, but he had used his card now.

“I hate you, Stilinski,” Danny mumbles as he takes Stiles’ stained shirt. “What if I get fired?”

“Mr. Hale won’t fire you,” Stiles responds. “He doesn’t notice you.”

“Thank god for that,” Danny says, with a smile. “He notices you, that’s for sure.”

Stiles snorts. “Only to point out how inept I am.”

“You’ve already been here for four years,” Danny notes. “No one had lasted more than a month and a half before you.”

Stiles shrugs. He tucks Danny’s white shirt into his pants, because it’s a bit bigger on him than he expected. He rolls up the sleeves and then picks up the one good coffee left. “The wolf has arrived.”

He hears some of the computers chime. Stiles remembers when he was stuck in a cubicle in the beginning of his career here. Whoever sees Mr. Hale first has to send out a simple message.  _He’s here._  It's the staff’s way of looking out for one another. They would hide their cell phones, tuck away the newspaper, and get back to their desks. Some would pick up the phone and pretend to be on a call.

The truth is that Mr. Hale didn’t make eye contact with anyone who worked below him in the cubicles. He barely made an effort to know his staff, and rarely did he ever show any concern for them.

It made Stiles want to hate Mr. Hale, but he couldn’t. Something about how the man worked drew him in. However, he'd rant about Mr. Hale for hours if anyone let him. Fuck, the man got under his skin with his emotionless... _everything._

“Stilinski,” Mr. Hale says as he steps past Stiles to enter his office. He takes the coffee cup from his hand and sits down. “It’s going to be a long day.”

Stiles immediately jumps into action. “Alright, you have a staff meeting at 10am. Laura called and said that you need to call her. And--”

“Did you call the girl?” Mr. Hale interrupts. Stiles  _hates_  when he does that. He snaps his fingers a couple times, trying to recall her name, and sighs. “The one who never shuts up?”

“Janice? I called her. I said that if she doesn’t have her manuscript to you by tomorrow, then we won't be moving forward with her book.” Stiles always responds as quickly as he can. Mr. Hale doesn’t waste time. He also doesn't participate in small talk, so he probably doesn't know the first thing about Stiles.

“Tomorrow? I thought the deadline was Friday,” Mr. Hale says. He doesn't even look at Stiles when he pulls something open on his desk.

“I changed it for you,” Stiles says without hesitation. “Because we both know she’ll send it on Wednesday.”

Mr. Hale shrugs. “Right.”

“And your immigration lawyer called, he said it was pretty urgent--”

“Okay, keep his name and number on a sticky note,” Mr. Hale says. Then he glances down at his coffee, “Stilinski, who’s Heather?”

Stiles’ eyes widened. He’s unsure what to make of that and then he blurts out, “She’s the barista at the coffee shop. I gave you my coffee because Danny spilled yours.”

Mr. Hale studies the cup for a second. Then he says, “Heather wants to call her. What do you drink?”

He takes a sip and looks up at Stiles. He can’t read Mr. Hale’s expression and he’s starting to sweat under his gaze.

“You drink cinnamon soy lattes?” Mr. Hale asks.

“Total coincidence,” Stiles jumps to say. He rubs the back of his neck. “I never would change my coffee order to be the same as yours in case yours spilled. That would be  _insane.”_

Mr. Hale shrugs and then picks up a folder. “Stilinski? Is there anything else?”

He shakes his head and steps into the next office to his own desk. Once Stiles has settled in, he fields calls for Mr. Hale. He takes care of anyone who is trying to get a hold of Mr. Hale. Stiles jumps when his reminder for the staff meeting at 10am buzzes on his computer.

He sends out a quick message to the staff on the floor - because he’s never stopped being one of them. It reads,  ** _One minute warning._**

Then he gathers his notes for the meeting and steps back into Mr. Hale’s office.

“The staff meeting, sir,” Stiles says, voice tight.

“Fuck,” Mr. Hale whispers. Then he stands up. “Yes, let’s go.”

Stiles nods and glances at the cubicles behind him. Everyone looks like they’re working hard with their head’s down and their phones to their ear. He lets Mr. Hale lead the way through the office to the meeting room on the other side.

“Mr. Hale, did you get a chance to read that manuscript I left on your desk last week?” Stiles asks, knowing that now isn’t the time.

“I didn't get through the first page. I wasn’t impressed.”

“Can I say something?” Stiles asks, trying to keep up with Mr. Hale’s pace.

“No,” he says immediately.

“You have to give it a chance,” Stiles says. “It was one of the best manuscripts I’ve ever read. I’ve read  _thousands_ of manuscripts. It was great and it reminded me of the manuscripts you used to publish.”

 _Those novels were the reason I wanted to work with you so badly,_  Stiles thinks.

“No, Stiles. We’re not publishing it,” Mr. Hale responds. He glances at Danny’s stained shirt as they pass him. “And by the way, I  _do_  think you order the same drink as me in case you spill mine.”

Stiles doesn’t know what to say to that. He keeps his mouth shut as they walk into the meeting room. Mr. Hale steps into the office of Matt and says, “Matt? You’re fired.”

Matt’s head shoots up. “What?”

“You’re fired. I told you to get our new novelist on  _Ellen_  and you didn’t do it. I’m sorry, but you’re fired,” Mr. Hale says. Stiles swallows, surprised, and confused. He shuts the office door behind him and leans against it.

_Why does he always have to bring me to these things?_

“Mr. Hale, our new novelist hasn’t done an interview in  _twenty_  years,” Matt whispers. “He refuses.”

“I just got off the phone with Laura. He’s doing the interview with Ellen. Someone told me that you didn’t even call him. Now, I’m going to give you two months to find a new job and settle in somewhere else. Thank you for working with us.” Mr. Hale turns and motions for Stiles to open the door. Which he does. With his lips parted in surprise and confusion.

Then as they step out, Mr. Hale asks under his breath, “What’s he doing?”

Stiles glances back and winces. “He’s charging.”

"Fuck,” Mr. Hale whispers for the second time that morning.

“You complete and utter jackass!” Matt comes out of his office screaming. Stiles glances around. The entire office has gone silent and everyone’s watching them. “You asshole! I have poured my blood and soul into this company. I have a family to support! How  _dare_  you? You are such an arrogant asshole. You think because you’re some hot-shot editor that you can just do whatever the hell you want? That you can bully me into doing shit?”

Stiles glances at Mr. Hale, who looks tired. Stiles leans against a cubicle wall and holds his breath. He’s seen Mr. Hale in a shouting war before. He knows how harsh he can be.

Instead, Mr. Hale says, “You don’t have a family to support. They left you two years ago, Matt. But no. I didn’t fire you because I think I can do whatever the hell I want. I fired you because you are rude, disrespectful, lazy, and a mediocre employee at best. The boss has assured me your replacement will be someone who gives a shit about this company.”

 _She has?_  Stiles hates not knowing these things.

“You--”

“No,” Mr. Hale says. “Not another word or else I will have you escorted out of this building. You can take me up on my two month offer or you can leave now. But not another word.”

Then he’s walking away and Stiles jumps to rush after him. When they enter into his office, Mr. Hale motions for him to shut the door behind him. When Stiles does, Mr. Hale says, “I don’t want to hear it, Stilinski. Not today. Now, I have seven manuscripts I need you to read this weekend since Matt will no longer be working with us. I need you give me your thoughts on them by Monday.”

"This weekend? Mr. Hale, I have the weekend off. It’s my grandmother’s 90th birthday--”

“Is that going to be a problem, Stilinski?” Mr. Hale asks.

“No.” Stiles ducks his head. “I’ll just call.”

His shoulders drop and then he leaves the office. When he calls his dad later on that day, he closes his eyes. “I know, I know, dad. What am I supposed to do? I have to work.”

Someone clears their throat at his doorway and his head shoots up. Great. Mr. Hale caught him on a personal call. He winces.  _“--and I don’t like how that man treats you. You are not his slave. You can take a damn weekend off, son.”_

“I gotta go. I’ll call you later. Love you!” Stiles says, hanging up. He stands up. “Mr. Hale, I’m sorr--”

"Did your family tell you to quit?” Mr. Hale asks, tilting his head.

“Only every day, sir.” Stiles jumps when the phone rings and answers it immediately. “Mr. Hale’s office, how may I help you?”

He nods a couple of times before he says thanks and hangs up. Stiles meets Mr. Hale’s eyes. “Um. Laura wants to see you in her office.”

“Oh. Alone?” Mr. Hale asks.

“Yeah. Alone,” Stiles says. “Do you need me to come with you anyway, sir?”

He shakes his head. “No, no, Stilinski. I’ll be back. Hold my calls.”

 _Always do,_  Stiles thinks as he falls back down into his chair.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

Stiles is typing an message to Danny complaining about how awful working for Mr. Hale is when the phone rings again. He picks it up and listens to Cora’s panicked voice on the phone.  _“You get down to that office, right now, Stilinski!”_

“Cora?” he says, confused.

_“Right now, Stilinski! Before it’s too late. Protect my brother, please. Help Derek. He might be rough around the edges, but he's a good person.”_

Stiles hangs up without questioning it. People around the office feel comfortable to refer to Laura and Cora by their first names, but Mr. Hale always stayed Mr. Hale. Regardless, Stiles wonders why  _Derek Hale_  would ever need his help. Or why Cora would beg him to go barge into the meeting he has with his sister.

He rushes down the hall, unsure why he didn’t even hesitate before getting out of his chair. Stiles opens the door and hears Laura say, “Here’s my brother’s husband-to-be now.”

Stiles freezes. His eyes lock onto Mr. Hale’s, who wears a hard expression and stares at Stiles as though he has no idea who he is. “Excuse me?”

Stiles sees the other two people in the room and enters it, shutting the door behind him. The man stands up and looks at him carefully. “You’re marrying Derek Hale?”

He pauses before he sees Laura’s face. She's giving him _that_ look. The same look that Stiles is sure Cora was wearing when she called him just now. Then before he can think it over, Stiles says, “Yes, but I didn’t think we were telling people yet.”

Stiles only catches the sigh of relief from both of the Hales out of the corner of his eye. He leans forward to shake hands with the man. “Stiles, Stiles Stilinski.”

“Brett Talbot. Nice to meet you, Stiles. How long have you been engaged?” the man asks, glancing to the girl at his side.

Stiles’ palms start to sweat. What had Laura and her brother already told these people? He asks, “Can someone fill me in first?”

Mr. Hale steps forward to stand beside Stiles. Quietly, he asks, “Remember when I took that trip I wasn’t supposed to?”

Stiles nods, because he’d spent two hours trying to convince Mr. Hale to  _not_  go on the damn thing. His visa was going through the renewal process and he wasn’t supposed to leave the country. Then it hits him like a brick.

“There’s going to be some issues with my visa,” Mr. Hale continues. “Laura here was telling them about our engagement before I had a chance to ask you... if you wanted to make it public news.”

Stiles blinks and lets it sink in. Then he offers the woman with Brett a bright smile. “Stiles Stilinski.”

“Tracy Stewart,” she offers back. “How did you two meet?”

"I’ve been at this company for four years now,” Stiles says, smiling. He steps closer to Mr. Hale now and bumps his arm into his boss’. “A lot of early mornings and late nights. Sometimes things just happen.”

Mr. Hale looks more than a little uncomfortable. At least, Stiles can read him by now. To Brett and Tracy, he probably looks displeased. Mr. Hale being uncomfortable means that he doesn't know how to handle a situation. That's usually when Stiles intercepts.

“Listen, if we find out that this marriage is a sham, you’ll both be in  _serious_  trouble,” Brett warns. “Derek, you’ll be deported back to Canada. You won’t be able to work with your family for at least a year. You might even be looking at two.”

“Why did my parents insist on having me in Canada?” Mr. Hale mumbles.

“Why didn’t you just renew your visa like your sisters?” Stiles says, but swallows hard when his teasing tone falls flat.

"Listen, you don’t have to worry about a thing. These two are madly in love,” Laura says, smiling. “My brother’s not going anywhere.”

Stiles feels Mr. Hale reach out and intertwine their fingers. Stiles glances up, and then squeezes. His boss looks ready to murder everyone in the room. But then Mr. Hale squeezes back and Stiles finds a lump in his throat.

“And neither am I,” Stiles whispers. He doesn’t care who hears, as long as Mr. Hale knows he’s going to follow through. Mr. Hale glances at him. Stiles says, “I actually came in here because there’s an important call for Mr--Derek. For Derek. That he needs to take.”

“Mr. Derek?” Brett asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, I try to call him Mr. Hale at work. I don’t want people to know we’re together and think I get special treatment. It’s been difficult to hide the relationship, you know?” Stiles says, shrugging. “It’ll be nice once we get married, and no one can say that it's because I was sleeping with the boss to get to the top. I was sleeping with the boss for love.”

Brett nods and Tracy says, “That’s respectable. I hope you both have a wonderful day. We’ll be in touch, because we’re going to have to interview you both. We need to ensure that this relationship is real.”

Stiles snorts. “It’s real. But yeah, sure, that’s okay. We’ll see you around. Nice meeting you both.”

Stiles drops Derek’s hand before they leave the office, and he gives Brett and Tracy a shrug. Mr.Hale - or Derek - whatever the hell Stiles is calling him now - walks to his office. Stiles wonders if he even notices all the people whispering. How did they find out so fast?

Stiles enters his office and shuts the door behind him. Mr.Hale sits down at his desk and then pulls out a manuscript. Stiles scoffs. “Dude, are you going to fucking explain what the hell just happened back there?”

Mr. Hale huffs and sets the papers down. “Listen, it’s my dumb sister’s brilliant idea. The thing is that I wouldn’t be able to work here. That means they were going to promote Matt, and Matt would’ve fired you in a heart beat. Any further promotion you might have a chance at would’ve been gone.”

“I’m not going to marry you,” Stiles murmurs.

“Okay, then we’re both out of jobs.” Mr. Hale flips the first page of his manuscript open. “Consider this from my perspective too - I don’t even know if you like men. But here my sister was, setting up the perfect lie that keeps us both in the job we like.”

“And--”

“And all your time working underneath me will be for nothing if you don’t marry me. Laura’s fucking us both over with this, by the way. It’s not like I want to marry you either, Stilinski.”

Stiles’ lips part. Then he says, “Fuck you, Derek.”

It’s the first time he’s  _ever_  said his first name. Boy, does it feel good.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“This is ridiculous,” Stiles mutters a few days later.

“It’s nice of Brett to meet us on such short notice to walk us through this,” Derek says. Things have certainly been tense between them, especially at the office. Yet, they’d started putting on a bit of a show because the whole office knows about their engagement now.

Derek insists on Stiles using his first name. He’s also started to brush against Stiles every so often when he can, and it’s messing with his brain. He's committed to the part, but Stiles isn't sure he is. The truth is that he has spent so much time hating on Derek that he doesn't really know how to  _like_  Derek.

Danny had pulled him aside to question him about the engagement - because if anyone knows about how much Derek drives Stiles insane, it's Danny. Stiles had stumbled over his answers, but mostly settled with the fact that he had to keep up appearances. Danny had whistled and claimed he was a great actor.

 _I hope so,_ Stiles had thought.

Brett seats them down now and says, “First question. Are you getting married so Derek Hale can stay in the country to keep his position as Chief Editor?”

"No,” Derek says. “That’s fraud.”

“Correct,” Brett says, eyeing them. Stiles has taken a seat, but Derek is still standing. Stiles reaches up and tugs on Derek’s hand, forcing him to sit. "We’ll be scheduling separate interviews. I’ll ask you all these questions that real couples will know the answer to, and I’ll look at your phone records. I’ll discuss your relationship with your neighbours and your friends and family. Your co-workers.”

“Okay,” Stiles says, glancing at Derek. He realizes that they’re still holding hands and so he squeezes.

“If your answers don’t match up at any point, Derek will be deported. And Stiles, you will be convicted of fraud. It’ll be a $250,000 fine and up to 5 years in prison.”

Stiles glances at Derek.

“Now, is there anything you need to tell me, Stiles?” Brett asks.

He realizes that there’s an opportunity here. Stiles takes a deep breath and shakes his head. “No, no. We’re just two people in love. As we said the other day, we haven’t made it obvious to our co-workers because of my big promotion coming up.”

“Promotion?” Brett asks. “I vaguely recall that.”

“Yes, well,” Stiles says, clearing his throat. Derek is squeezing his hand a bit too tight but he’s not going to look at him. “The promotion to editor would’ve looked dirty if we were open with our relationship.”

“We're finalizing it soon,” Derek adds.

Stiles glances at him now, unsure what to make of that. He thought Derek would fight him on it.

Derek says, “The only reason he hasn’t been promoted already is because he’s the best damn assistant I’ve ever had. I couldn’t--I didn’t want to lose him. Before Stiles, I went through assistants quite frequently.”

“Yeah, he did. I think he almost shit his pants the first time I spoke back to him,” Stiles says, laughing a little now.

Derek smiles, but it’s not his usual bright smile that he gets when he’s relaxed and happy.

“Have you told your parents?” Brett asks.

“My parents are dead, but we’re announcing our relationship to his family this weekend. It’s his grandmother’s 90th birthday,” Derek answers. “We thought it’d be a nice surprise.”

“Yes. It’s in Beacon Hills,” Stiles says, smiling.

“Beacon Hills?” Brett asks.

Derek glances at him. “Yeah, Beacon Hills, California. Nice little trip.”

“Alright. I’ll see you back here, 11am on Monday.” Brett stands up. “Your answers better match up.”

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“Nice touch about the promotion,” Derek says when they get out onto the sidewalk. “I’ll mention it to Laura. She'll get it all worked out.”

“I’m looking at a $250,000 fine and  _five years in jail_  if this doesn’t work,” Stiles hisses. “Damn straight, I’m getting that promotion.”

“You deserve it anyway,” Derek says. “You’ll do it?”

“I’ll do it. But you have to get on one knee and ask me nicely.”

Derek drops to his knee and says, “Stiles Stilinski, will you marry me?”

He blinks at least twice before he can process what he’s witnessing. He nods. “Yes. Now get up, you’re going to ruin your suit. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll pick you up at 3:30am.”

“Wait,  _what?”_

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“I printed off a list of questions that you’ll need to know about me by Monday at 11am.” Stiles hands Derek a small binder. “Since I know all the answers about you, it’ll be easy.”

“You know all these answers about me?” Derek flips the binder open to a random page and asks, “What am I allergic to?”

“Cats, pine cones, and milkweed.” Stiles leans in and whispers, “Plus all human emotion and interaction.”

Derek snorts.

Stiles raises an eyebrow. “Next question.”

“Favourite article of clothing,” Derek says.

“Your ties and socks,” Stiles answers immediately. “You know what? I’m tired. It’s going to be hell having to lie to all my family and friends about getting married to you. I don’t want to play.”

Derek asks, “Did you tell your parents about me?”

"My dad, yeah. My mom’s passed on now.” Stiles looks out the window. “He’s going to be tough to impress.”

“Sorry. Sorry about your mother. And the fact that I didn’t know,” Derek murmurs.

Stiles doesn’t know how to respond to that. He pretends to fall asleep.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“Oh god, oh fuck,  _no.”_  Stiles pushes pass Derek and then presses his nose to the window. “Do you see what I see?”

“Um, no?” Derek comes up beside him.

“My dad and my family. Fuck, I am not prepared for this. Alright, Hale, you better make sure that that my family likes you. This might be my grandmother’s last year, and well, she deserves to think I’m happy. Okay?” Stiles asks, leaning back on his heels now.

“Okay, Stiles.”

He grabs his suitcase and heads out towards his dad. When he gets close enough that he can drop his stuff, he does. Then he’s running towards his dad. They share a bear hug and his dad says, “God, it’s good to see you, son. It’s good to see you. It’s been too long. Now, I want to meet your new man.”

Stiles rubs the back of his neck, smiling at his friends, and turning back to Derek. Who, Stiles sees, has attempted to pick up his dropped bags like a gentleman. “Everyone, um, this is Derek Hale.”

“Derek Hale?” The first person to question it is Scott McCall. Stiles turns, makes a face, and then throws his arms around his best friend.

“Scottie!”

 _“The_  Derek Hale?” Scott whispers into his ear.

“Yes. It’s a long story,” Stiles responds. He steps away from Scott and smiles at the rest of his family standing here. “Allison. Happy to see you!”

“You’re going to be an uncle!” Allison says, stepping away from Scott to proudly show off her belly. “We wanted to tell you in person.”

Stiles grins and gives her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Congrats, Ally. I’m so happy for you! Do we know if they’re a she or a he?”

“They’re a she.” Allison grins. “Or a he or whatever they want to be.”

Stiles squeezes her hand. Then he turns to Liam. “I’m happy to see you’re here. It’s been a long time, man.”

“Too long. Come here,” Liam says, stepping forward for a hug. “I’m glad you’re home.”

“Yeah. Yeah, me too.”

_Fuck. He hates lying._

“This is the jerk who overworks you and doesn’t pay you enough?” Stiles’ father asks, eyeing Derek up.

“Yeah, but I love him. What can you do?” Stiles says, with a shrug. “Shall we head home?”

“Is it still home?” his dad asks. Stiles had known he's upset that Stiles had moved away. Hadn’t taken after his footsteps and become a Sheriff like he’d wanted.

Stiles doesn’t respond. He glances at Derek, who watches their interaction with a serious curiousity. Stiles swallows. This is going to be the longest weekend of his life.

“Stiles has only told us horror stories about you, man.” Scott claps a hand on Derek’s shoulders. “I’m interested to know how you made him change his mind.”

“It wasn’t easy,” Derek says, with a small smile.

Scott laughs and Stiles knows that he already likes Derek.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

Stiles wasn’t expecting the welcoming party that they throw for him that night. He also hadn’t expected Lydia to show up. The problem with Lydia is that there never _was_ a problem with her. She had ignored him for most of their lives before Allison started dating Scott. Then they’d fallen in love. He wanted to go to New York. She wanted to go travel everywhere. But then she’d stayed. Her mom had gotten sick and she hadn’t gone anywhere.

It's nice getting caught up with her, but he keeps their conversations short. He doesn’t want to give anyone the wrong impression. Least of all Derek. Stiles knows everyone in the house watches him with Lydia, waiting to see if anything has changed. It has.  _He_ has. Hell, even she has. Lydia used to have the whole world at her fingertips, and then she’d settled on staying here. Stiles still can’t wrap his mind around it. It’s not the Lydia he knows.

Derek keeps an eye on him, only asking twice why he hadn’t told anyone they are engaged. Stiles says he’s not ready. Lying to his family, to these people who helped him become him...it’s hard.

When his dad brings up him coming home to stay  _again,_  Stiles snaps. He shouts that he’s engaged. He watches Lydia’s smile drop, Scott’s eyes get wide, and Allison’s lips part. But it’s Derek’s reaction that strikes him as the most interesting. The guy is  _smiling._ It’s not as though they’re getting along now. In fact, the tension between them has never been higher. Stiles’ father storms out of the room with Lydia not far behind him.

Derek comes over to him, wrapping his arm around Stiles’ waist and he whispers,  _“It’ll be okay.”_

It’s the first time Stiles finds himself leaning into Derek. And fuck, it feels  _good._

“Did I miss the story?” Kira, a friend of his from high school, asks when she arrived a few hours after the announcement. “How did you propose?”

“I didn’t propose. Actually, Derek asked me,” Stiles says. He glances over at Derek. “Do you want to do the honours?”

Derek studies Stiles for a moment before he says, “It was cheesy, but Stiles loves cheesy.”

“Always been a huge sucker for it,” Scott says, nodding with approval.

“I was reading this manuscript in my office late at night when I realized how I felt about Stiles. That I wanted to marry him,” Derek says. It’s the most Stiles has ever heard him say in a room full of strangers before. Normally, Derek keeps his mouth shut and observes. Not tonight. “This manuscript was awful. It needs  _a lot_  of work before it can become publishable. So I wasn’t paying much attention. But I saw some of Stiles’ notes on the side. And I knew. I knew I wanted to marry him.”

Stiles blinks, surprised. That sounded so believable. Derek’s better at this than he thought. He wonders why they’re both trying so hard to make his family believe this relationship was real. He knows he gets a promotion out of it. Gets to keep his job. And Derek gets to keep his. Still, these are great lengths to go for a job. Is it worth it?

“I handed him a manuscript that was good and would keep his interest. I took the last chapter out and wrote a sticky note with instructions on where to find me. When he did, I was waiting in a private room of his favourite restaurant. There were roses and candles everywhere. I got on one knee and asked.”

“I said no at first,” Stiles jumps in, improvising. “Because I thought he was kidding. He pulled out this beautiful ring - but  _of course,_  it had to be re-sized so it’s at the shop still. Once I saw the ring, I realized he was being serious, and I said yes. I had to do some convincing him after that, but we kissed and made up.”

Derek nods with approval. He adds, “In the end of the manuscript that I had given Stiles, the couple ends up together. Happy. For life. That’s how I wanted us to be.”

Stiles tries to swallow the lump in his throat.  _But it won't be for life, will it? There's a timeline on this._

"Kiss!” Stiles’ grandmother, Betty, shouts from the couch. “Kiss, kiss, kiss!”

Stiles glances at Derek. Only after everyone starts chanting do they lean into each other. It’s a quick peck. It’s a disappointment to the crowd and Stiles. The cheering continues on and Stiles decides to just go for it.

He puts a hand at the base of Derek’s neck and pulls him in. Their lips touch, and he hears people shouting, but he’s floored with a bunch of emotions.

It feels better than good. It feels...right. Derek moans and yanks Stiles’ closer with a hand around his waist. Stiles melts into it and whimpers when Derek pulls back.

“Okay,” Stiles whispers, a little breathless. “Yes, to...yes.”

There are some cheers and some clapping. Stiles doesn’t care. He goes through the rest of the evening in a daze. He's looking at Derek with wonderment and curiousity. How had he not known?

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“Your family is pretty great,” Derek says from the bed. Stiles settles in on the floor. He feels his cheeks grow red, because his grandmother had nudged him about getting laid. Boy, was she wrong if she thought he was having sex. Derek hadn’t wanted to sleep in the same bed, and well, Stiles didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. The floor wasn’t so bad.

“Yeah, they are,” Stiles murmurs in agreement.

“Can I ask what’s up with you and your dad?” Derek asks after a moment.

“No,” Stiles responds. “We might be getting married, but you cannot ask me about my relationship with my father. That’s off-limits, okay?”

There’s a pause before Stiles hears a murmur of agreement. Derek seems to be shuffling in his bed a lot before he settles down. “My sister’s are insane. They made this plan without my knowledge. I can’t believe-I can’t believe you’re going along with it.”

Stiles rolls over. He doesn’t feel like talking anymore. What does it say about him, as a person, that he’s accepted this plan? Hell, he could ‘fess up and say he was blackmailed into this mess. Derek would leave, and he could sue the company. Maybe even get Derek’s job. Stiles closes his eyes. No, he couldn’t imagine work without Derek. As scary and assholeish Derek is, that work place  _works_  because of him.

Stiles can't count how many times he's called up his father or Scott or even Allison to rant about something that Derek had done to piss him off. Sometimes he'd call up Kira just to complain about the fact that Derek never smiles. He wonders what they all really think of him now. They're probably so confused. Stiles can't blame them. Not one bit.

He pretends to fall asleep, and it’s a long time before Derek says anything else. Even then, it’s a simple,  _“Thank you. For doing this. I don’t know who I am without my job.”_

Stiles looks around the dark room in front of him and realizes that he’s not doing this for the promotion. He’s not even doing it for his job. He’s doing it for Derek.  _That’s new._

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“Your friends are taking me out today.” Derek looks at Stiles when he joins him downstairs for breakfast. Stiles runs a hand through his messy bed hair and gives him a smile. He leans into Derek and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek.

Stiles is reaching for a box of cereal from the fridge before he realizes what he's done. He freezes for a moment before turning to look at Derek. The guy’s eyes are wide and he looks as white as a ghost.

“Dude,” Stiles whispers, leaning towards Derek. “I’m  _so_  sorry.”

Derek shakes his head. “It’s fine, Stiles. We’re a couple now.”

He wonders if he’s heard Derek say his name before. He probably has, but it sounds so good. His sleepy brain can’t come up with anything to say, so he gives Derek a dopey grin and pours his cereal into his bowl.

“Do you know what you’ll be doing?” Stiles asks after the milk’s in his bowl.

Derek shrugs. “No, but your friends seem nice.”

Stiles’ smile falls. “They are. They’re great.”

“But...?” Derek prompts a few seconds later. Stiles lets one of his shoulders fall and he has a hard time looking up at Derek. But he does anyway. “C’mon Stiles, why the face?”

“I never see them anymore. It’s easy to lose touch. I mean, Scott, Allison, and Kira still try. Sometimes. But...it’s nice seeing them. That’s all.” Stiles hopes that Derek lets it drop.

“It’s because you work too much, isn’t it?” Derek asks. So, no, he’s not going to let it drop. Stiles doesn’t say anything and then Derek murmurs, “I’m going to fix this. I'll be better. After everything you're doing for me, I'll...I'll be better.”

Stiles doesn’t jump when his friends come crashing into the kitchen, laughing. He gives them all a big smile. Scott says, “We wanna get to know your boy a little better, so we’re taking him hostage today!”

“I--oh god. Are you going to be okay?” Stiles teases as though he hadn’t known this already.

Allison claps Derek’s back and hovers behind him. She gives Stiles her famous bright smile. “He’s going to be just fine. He’ll get to hear countless stories about you. We all know he’s dying to hear about that time you ended up on Lydia’s front lawn without any clothes on.”

Derek chokes on his spoonful of cereal and looks at Stiles wide-eyed. “You did  _what?”_

“It wasn’t my fault!” Stiles protests. He rolls his eyes when Kira starts laughing too.

“It was his fault and he fucking enjoyed the hell out of it,” Kira says, leaning into Allison. She reaches across the counter for an orange. “And to top it off, he had a boom box.”

Derek laughs now and says, “I definitely want to hear the full story on this.”

“I hate you all!” Stiles says, laughing with them. But then he shares a smile with Derek and things feel lighter. It's easier to breathe when Derek looks at him like that.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

Of course, what goes up must come down. Stiles’ good mood comes crashing down when he finds his dad outside later in the afternoon. He doesn’t know how it happens. One minute, his dad is asking him how he’d gone from hating Derek to being in love with him. It seems as though they’re having a good conversation as Stiles explains that part of his 'hatred' was denial for his real feelings. Then in the next minute, his dad is asking when he’s going to come home and be Sheriff of Beacon Hills.

“Why are you obsessed with me coming home and being a Sheriff?” Stiles shouts. He can’t handle this. Why do that always have to have the same argument over and over again.

His dad steps forward but lowers his voice. All he says is, “Because your mother wanted you to.”

Stiles loses it. He doesn’t know where to put his emotions, so he walks out. After all, that’s what he’s best at according to his father. He starts hacking away at wood despite knowing he’s shitty at it. When Derek, Scott, Allison, and Kira come back, he's still chopping wood.

He doesn’t acknowledge them. How is it that it’s been  _years_  and they’ve had the same argument with the same damn ending? Stiles knows that his father is clinging to the idea that he’d be a Sheriff like him. But Stiles has never wanted to follow that path. Not once.

When Stiles runs out of wood to chop, he makes his way back into the house. He's wearing his headphones blaring his favourite song. When he hears shouting, he's surprised.

He’s not the only one who’s been having a rough day. Stiles pops out one headphone and pauses in the kitchen.

 _“What the hell is wrong with you?”_ Allison’s voice echos around the house. Stiles’ eyebrows come together. _“He’s finally here! You finally have your son back. You should be enjoying this weekend with him! Look how happy he is with his future husband, John. Now, get your head out of your ass and make the most of the little time we have with him. Otherwise, we're going to go back to random phone calls at 4am of him ranting about something stupid because he's lonely.”_

Stiles takes a step back. He's not an idiot; he’d known that his friends had been aware of the issues with him and his father. He’d never  _ever_  thought he’d hear Allison shout at him like that. Stiles knows Scott, Allison, Lydia, Kira, and Liam spend a lot of time around his dad. He had been touched to know they still visited his dad to make sure he was doing alright. However,  _this_ was a whole new level to their relationship that Stiles hadn't expected.

 _"Allison,”_  the Sheriff says, voice tight.

 _“You should listen to me, or else you’ll regret it.”_  Allison’s heels storm the opposite way of Stiles.

He pops his head phone back in and heads up the stairs. He’s unsure what to make of everything. Stiles decides he’s going to take a quick shower, and yanks his clothes off. He even tosses his iPhone and headphones onto the bed.

Stiles keeps repeating Allison’s words in his head. They’d never been close. He’d always had a soft spot for her, because Scott had been in love with her since day one. He’s never seen Scott as happy as he is when he’s around Allison. The fact that she'd stand up for him, for his relationship with his father, just like that...it was moving. Stiles tries to remember the last time anyone's ever done something like that for him.

Stiles is so wrapped up in his head that he doesn’t hear the bathroom door open as he turns around to head inside. He doesn’t realize anything is happening until he’s falling backwards, and with a naked, wet Derek on top of him.

“What the hell?!” Stiles shouts. All he can feel is  _Derek._ His weight, his muscles, his  _skin._  

“Why are you  _naked?”_  Derek demands, struggling to move.

“Why are  _you?”_ Stiles shouts. He feels helpless as Derek struggles to prop his arms up. It’s strange how...not strange Derek’s body feels. Stiles can’t think about that now. He can’t think about the fact that Derek’s naked, because then he’ll get hard. That’ll be embarrassing for them both.  _Baseball, baseball, baseball..._ but now he can only think of how good Derek would look in a baseball player's uniform.  _Fuck._

“Shower!” Derek says, finally pushing his chest up off Stiles. Only it means that his crotch has buried itself deeper into Stiles’ and he can’t help it. Derek’s dick feels  _good._

 _“Fuck, fuck,_ fuck,” Stiles whispers after Derek pushes himself full off Stiles. “Close your eyes, dude!”

“Stiles, I--”

Stiles scrambles to hide himself, but he sees the way Derek’s eyes flash. He knows. Oh my god,  _he fucking knows._  Stiles wants to bury himself in a hole. He glances at Derek and somehow, he feels relieved when he’s not the only one sporting some goods.

Stiles’ cheeks go bright red before Derek is dashing across the room to hide himself in a blanket. “Stiles, why are you naked?”

“I was going to take a shower. I didn’t think you were up here! I thought you were with Scott and the others in the living room.” Stiles can’t see Derek from where he is behind him. He says, “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m mostly okay. I’m going to throw you a blanket. Um. Stiles, I just wanted to clarify that you may have felt- -well, um, it’s a biological thing. Like, I couldn’t stop it if I tried,” Derek says.

Stiles snorts. “Dude, back at you.”

“You were--?”

“I’m offended that you didn’t feel it then,” Stiles retorts. “It’s quite impressive.”

Derek laughs now. When Derek quiets down, he asks, “Did you ever picture yourself here, right now, with me?”

Stiles shakes his head, unsure if Derek can see him from where he is. He now has his blanket wrapped around him and he’s moved back to lean against the bed. “Fuck no. I could barely picture calling you something other than Mr. Hale.”

Derek groans. “That drives me  _crazy._ Please quit it.”

Stiles turns to prop himself up on the end of the bed. Derek’s completely covered now, but it still feels like they’re both naked. “Really? Why didn’t you say so?”

“Because, in case you haven’t noticed, Stiles, well... I don’t exactly have the best social skills,” Derek mumbles.

“Huh. I never noticed.”

“Sarcasm. It suits you.”

Stiles laughs again and then says, “I’m going to go shower now. Feel free to watch the show. If you don’t, you’ll miss out.”

He doesn’t look to see if Derek follows him with his eyes. Somehow, he knows that he does and that Derek is just as confused as he is.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“You really love him, huh?” Scott asks when they have a moment alone. Stiles doesn't know how to answer that, so he just meets his friend's eyes. Scott nods. “I had a feeling you weren't ranting about him for no reason. He drove you nuts because you loved him, right?”

“Right," Stiles says. He pulls Scott into a hug. “Fuck, it's so good to see you, man. How have you been? How has everyone been? We haven't really had a chance to catch up.”

“Good, we're all good. Liam started dating a girl named Hayden. They're really cute together. You'd like her; she's sassy and gives no shits who you are, she'll tell it like it is.” Scott smiles brighter now. “Ally and I are already planning on having another kid. We know it's crazy, but we really want them to be close enough in age so that they can be close.”

“That's great, Scott. I'm really happy for you both. And Lydia?" Stiles prompts. “How is she?”

“She's been okay. We all thought she'd leave Beacon Hills when her mom passed away, but she's been pretty content to stay here. She's been happy,” Scott says, nodding. “And you?”

“Happy,” Stiles promises. "At least, I'm getting there. Fuck, I really miss you.”

“You should come home more often,” Scott says.

The conversation dies after that. Scott always says that when they see each other, and Stiles always promises he will, but he never does. Hell, he didn't even make it home last Christmas because Mr--because  _Derek_ had had him working around the clock. Stiles is starting to wonder if it's because Derek doesn't know what it's like to have people waiting for him at home.

“I missed you,” Stiles whispers before he hugs Scott all over again.

“We missed you more,” Scott promises.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

That night, while Stiles is lying on the floor looking up at the ceiling, he wonders what Monday will be like. They’ll be back in the office. Maybe nothing will have changed. Maybe everything will have. Stiles doesn’t find either thought comforting.

He rolls over and stares at the foot of the bed; where he’d been sitting earlier today. He hears Derek shuffling around in the bed.

“You still awake?” Stiles asks.

“Yeah,” comes a breathy response. 

“I ordered a new phone for you," Stiles says. “It should be here within a day or so.”

“How did you know I lost mine?"

“Allison mentioned it earlier. Why didn't you?”

“Who knows?” Derek murmurs. “I can’t stop thinking of all the stories I heard about you today. About you and Lydia.”

Stiles freezes. At least a minute passes in silence before he says, “What about Lydia and I do you want to know?”

“Are you still in love with her?” Derek asks into the darkness.

“No,” Stiles responds. He lets out a deep breath and then adds, “We don’t know each other anymore. I’m different now.”

“She’s still in love with you,” Derek whispers.

“No, she’s not. She’s in love with the idea of me and the idea of travelling with me. But the truth is, she has everything she needs right here. Her family, her friends, her job--she would’ve left if she wanted to,” Stiles says.

“She...she came to visit you once. In New York. I couldn’t figure out where I’d seen her before, or why she seemed familiar to me, but...she came to visit you.” Derek confesses as if he's been holding onto this terrible secret for too long.

Stiles doesn’t know how to wrap his mind around that. Lydia following him to New York? He shakes his head, despite knowing that Derek wasn’t lying. He closes his eyes and asks, “Did you turn her away?”

“Sort of. It was the day of the meeting with Fred, like a year or so ago. I didn’t know who she had been to you then. I just knew she was looking for you and a stubborn woman. Security escorted her out because she lunged at me and tried to punch me.” Derek shifts in the bed. “I never told you because I figured she’d already called you to complain about how much of an asshole I was. You weren’t in the best mood that day, but you never said anything.”

“I had no idea,” Stiles tells him. “I remember being in a bad mood because you kept treating me like a kid.”

“If you’d seen Lydia that day...?” Derek prompts. Stiles gives up trying to figure out how he feels about this insane situation. He just smiles a little, because for once, he’s  _finally_  getting to know Derek. The real Derek. Not the asshole Mr. Hale he’s had to work with the past four years. He’s finally seeing a whole new side of him and he  _likes_  him.

Stiles wants to tell Derek that he would’ve kissed Lydia and made things okay between them again. That they would’ve gotten back together.

Instead, Stiles answers with the truth. “I would’ve told her to go wait at my apartment because we had a huge meeting with Fred and that I didn’t have time for her. She would’ve waited there all night, and I would’ve forgotten about her. We still would’ve fallen asleep in the board room among the paperwork. And she would’ve been gone by the time I finally got home the following night at seven. Nothing would’ve changed.”

Derek makes a noise; one that Stiles can’t quite figure out. A few minutes later, he realizes that Derek’s asleep. He rolls over, shifts until he’s comfortable, and falls asleep easier than he’d expected.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

There’s a knock on the door early in the morning. Stiles feels a pillow hit him in the face. He groans and then Derek’s whispering,  _“Stiles! Stiles, get up. Scott’s at the door. Stiles. Get up.”_

Stiles pulls the pillow over his face and then he sits upright. He looks at Derek, who’s glaring at him from the end of the bed. There’s another knock.

 _“Room service! You have ten seconds to cover up!”_ Scott’s voice comes, amused at his own little joke.

Stiles jumps to his feet, grabbing the pillows and tossing them on the bed. He takes his blanket and throws them at Derek.  _“What do we do?”_

 _“Get in, get in!”_ Derek hisses. Louder for Scott, he says, “Just a minute!”

Stiles jumps into the bed beside Derek and they try to figure out the most couple-like position to be in. When Derek attempts to be the big spoon, Stiles glances back at him. “Dude.”

_“It’s morning. Shut up.”_

“Come in!” Stiles shouts for Scott. He adjusts himself against Derek. They’re still figuring out what to do with their hands when Scott comes in.

“Morning,” Scott says, full of sunshine. “Ally and I thought it’d be a nice surprise if we made the happy couple breakfast in bed. She’s on her way up with some freshly squeezed orange juice.”

“Man, you lucked out with her, eh?” Stiles asks, sitting up a bit more. Derek does the same, but tugs Stiles closer to him.

“She’s the best,” Scott says, grinning. “And we’ve been doing some thinking.”

“We want you to get married tomorrow!” Allison shouts, stepping into the bedroom with two glasses of orange juice. “Isn’t it the perfect plan? We already have a bunch of great decorations for your grandmother’s birthday. People you care about are going to be here. You were planning on getting married anyway!”

Stiles feels Derek stiffen beside him and he looks to make sure Derek’s okay. “Um. Derek’s family isn’t here--”

“We got a hold of Laura and your sisters are flying out tomorrow. It’s perfect!” Allison says, grinning. She places the glasses onto the cart that Scott had brought in.

“It’s Stiles’ grandmother’s birthday--”

“Yeah, exactly and--”

“I’ve had 89 birthdays,” Stiles’ grandmother, Betty, says as she walks into the bedroom. “I don’t need another. It’d be an honour to see you two married before I die.”

Stiles looks at Derek, who says, “I’ll have to invite out a couple more people.”

"It’s decided! Yes! This wedding is going to be  _perfect._  Just wait and see!” Allison says, clapping her hands together. “I’ll make sure everything’s in order. Come on, Scott, we have plans to make.”

“This is so exciting!” Betty says as she walks out with Scott and Allison. “We should hire  _doves.”_

They shut the door behind them and Stiles starts to panic. He looks at Derek and pulls away. “Oh my god. Oh my god. If my family finds out that this is fake... That this is  _for your green card,_  and ... oh my god, this is going to crush them, and my grandmother is going to die. And...Derek--”

“They’re not going find out,” Derek says.  He shifts to start rubbing Stiles’ shoulders. “They won’t find out. We'll pretend that we’re in love, get married, and then we’ll get divorced soon enough. You can blame it all on me. Lord knows they’ve heard enough of the terrible shit I’ve put you through at work alone. They’ll believe it.”

Stiles glances down to where Derek’s hands are rubbing his shoulders. “You’re sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure! It’s going to be okay. Okay?” Derek asks. His hands stop moving and he leans forward to put his chin on Stiles’ shoulder. “You okay?”

Stiles nods. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

“Alright then,” Derek says, getting out of the bed. Stiles watches him go over to the cart that Scott brought in. He immediately misses Derek’s warmth and large hands on him. Unsure what to do with that thought, he just stares. “Do you want our coffee?”

Stiles lets out a small laugh and says, “Sure, why not?”

Derek grins as he starts pouring some coffee into the mugs. He brings over the mug and a plate of breakfast pastries when he sits back down on the bed. Stiles puts the coffee onto the nightstand beside him.

"You’re right. We’ll have a quick divorce and it’ll be fine. Absolutely fine.”

“Exactly. And maybe I’ll even learn how to cook,” Derek says. He yanks the cart closer to him so he can grab the plate of eggs and bacon. “So I can keep you happy because I don’t want you to leave me for someone else. Here, have some OJ.”

Their laughs are full with tension, and Stiles says, “I haven’t left you yet, Derek.”

Derek stills, before he says, “I should go. I’m going to go to the washroom and I’m going to--I need to go for a run.”

Stiles frowns, but he lets him go. This is a business deal. It's supposed to be easy. Instead, Stiles is wondering how the hell they’d managed to make it this far without murdering each other. How had he missed this side of Derek before? The one that wants to take care of him? The one that needs important people in his life to be there for his wedding - even if it’s a complete sham?

He’s gone before Derek gets out of the bathroom. He needs some air to clear his mind. So he heads on a walk. About ten minutes later, he hears a bike pass by on another trail in the distance. He wonders who that could be and then lets it go.

If this was any other person, he wouldn’t have considered marrying them. Not for the reasons that he had with Derek. Stiles doesn’t know what that means - if it means anything at all. Somehow, he wonders if he knew Derek was a real person underneath all of the crap he's put up with at work.

He remembers finding Derek asleep at his desk around one in the morning once. He'd tried to wake him up, but Derek had been so exhausted that he slept right through all the poking and prodding. Stiles had dragged his chair to the couch. Then he mostly pushed Derek off the chair onto the couch. Stiles had covered him up with a blanket and hadn't gone home that night. He'd fallen asleep sitting upright against the side of the couch.

They'd woke up in confusion, and Derek had been drooling all over his throw pillow. That day, Derek had been a little bit nicer to Stiles. He'd shown a softer side.

The next day, they'd been right back to where they'd started. But Stiles never forgot the way Derek had said thank you for taking care of him.

When Stiles runs into Lydia on the trails, he’s surprised. They used to walk around these old trails together, when they were younger. Somehow, he figured Lydia would've avoided them. Although, that thought is stupid. She's not still into him, and why would she ever let an ex prevent her from enjoying these trails?

“Hi.”

“Hi, Stiles.”

“I’m just--”

“Don’t worry. Allison called me. I’m happy for you. I’m actually late to meet her, Scott, and your father about some details for the wedding tomorrow. I’ll see you around, Stiles.”

Just like that, Lydia’s gone again. He watches her walk away until she’s out of sight. How is it that he’d let her go? Then he remembers that she’d come to New York to see him. Nothing would’ve changed. They weren’t meant to be together.

He finally turns back to his reflective walk when he hears a familiar voice.

_“To the window, to the window. To the wall, to the wall. To the sweat dripping down my balls. To all you bitches crawl. All skeet, all skeet, mother, all skeet, all skeet, goddamn!”_

Stiles turns down the small hill beside him to wander closer to Derek’s voice.

 _“Let’s take it to the bridge!”_  Derek says. Then he’s singing again.  _“Let me see you get low, you scared, you scared. Drop that ass to the floor, you scared. You scared. Let me see you get low, you scared, you scared. Drop that ass to the floor, you scared, you--”_

Stiles walks up to see Derek and his grandmother singing around a fire. He interrupts with a simple, “Whatcha doing?”

Derek stops and looks up at him. “Just chanting with your grandmother. Um, she said to sing whatever came to mind and--”

“Balls? Balls came to mind?” Stiles asks, but he’s trying not to laugh.

“It went with the beat!” Derek defends.

“I just got a text that your phone I ordered is in. Wanna go?” Stiles asks. He’d actually gotten the text last night that his old high school friend had sorted it out for him within the hour of the request. He had been enjoying Derek relax without worrying about work.

“Yes! Um, Grandma Betty, is it okay if I go with him?” Derek asks.

“Wherever you shall go, you shall be,” she replies with a wink. Derek nods as though he takes it to heart. “It’s how you two ended up together, isn’t it? Go, go!”

“Thanks!” Derek says, leaning forward to give Stiles’ grandmother a quick peck on the cheek.

Stiles waves bye to his grandmother and slips his hand into Derek’s as they walk away. For appearances. Because it’s a business deal. Except they hold hands all the way back to the house.

“So you’re a freak, huh?”

“Shut up. Grandma Betty is pretty badass.”

Stiles laughs. “She is. I miss her a lot. Don’t get to see her much.”

“Sorry about that,” Derek murmurs.

“Not your fault. It’s my decision and I have to live with it,” Stiles reminds him. “C’mon, let’s get going.”

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

“I have forty-two voice mails,” Derek mumbles when he gets the phone. “Forty-two. Fuck. I need a computer. Is there a computer in this small town?”

Stiles huffs, and leads him towards the library. Once he sorts out the whole non-membership thing with the man behind the desk, he hands Derek a bunch of dimes. “Insert the dimes in here when the internet drops. It’ll give you a warning when it does. It’s a bit old-fashion around here.”

“You’re not kidding. Jesus.” Derek turns to stare at the computer screen. “Alright, so, first thing---”

Stiles sees Lydia. Strange how she should be at his place helping out with the wedding tomorrow. Strange that she’d even been willing to do that at all, actually. Stiles wonders why she'd bother.

“I’ll be outside.”

Derek protests but Stiles leaves. He jogs across the street. “Lydia! Lydia, wait up.”

She turns. “Stiles--oh. Hi.”

“I just--I want to make sure you’re okay? Um. Derek just told me about you visiting me a year--”

Lydia’s face goes still. She tilts her head up again and says, “He  _just_  told you? What a fine husband you have there. It’s fine, Stiles. You were right. We aren’t meant to be together. I know that now. Hell, I knew it then. I just wasn’t ready to lose you as my friend, Stiles.”

He rubs the back of his neck. “Lydia, I’m sorry. With my--”

“I know,” she says, putting a hand on his lower arm. “I know. Your dad’s been too tough on you. Sometimes, when we’re at work, he’ll call me Stiles instead of Lydia. He misses you.”

Stiles nods. “Some way of showing it.”

“It’ll get better. Remember the first time we made him laugh after your mom passed on?” Lydia prompts.

It immediately gets a laugh out of Stiles. What he doesn’t know, is that Derek’s standing at the window watching. Instead, Stiles laughs again and grabs Lydia’s hand to squeeze it.

“Thanks for being so incredible.”

“Always,” she says, with a wink. “You should meet my boyfriend, Aiden. You’d hate him.”

Stiles laughs.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

They run into Allison and his grandmother a few hours later on their way back to the car. Derek’s been quiet this afternoon, only speaking about work-related things. Stiles isn’t sure what he did wrong. But then Allison and Betty are taking Derek away from him and Stiles is heading home alone.

He texts Derek on his new phone to ask if he wants to take a boat out on the lake later. Derek says yes and when he’ll meet him at the dock. Stiles avoids his father that day. Not because he wants to, or because their last fight was so bad that he can’t stand to be around him... No, he just does because he wants to be in a good mood to see Derek later.

“Looking good sunshine,” Stiles greets Derek walking down the dock to him.

Derek doesn’t respond, but instead hops into the boat. He asks, “Can you untie it?”

Just as Stiles finishes untying the rope at the back of the boat, Derek hits the gas and they’re flying forward. He spins around and clings to the side of the boat as he makes his way to the front.

“Mind telling me  _what the hell’s wrong?”_  Stiles shouts when he’s beside Derek.

“I just need to get away!” Derek shouts back.

“What happened?” Stiles asks. “We need to talk about this!”

“Not right now!” Derek bellows back.

Stiles lets him speed in the boat for about five minutes in silence. He looks out at the water, only checking on Derek with a quick glance here and there. Derek looks panicked and angry. It’s not a good combination.

He wants to reach out and comfort Derek, but he’s guessing that contact might not be the best for him right now. Stiles leans back in his seat and holds on for the ride.

It’s another five minutes before he asks, “Wanna talk about it now?”

“I forgot, okay?!” Derek shouts.

“Forgot what?”

“What’s it’s like to have a family!” Derek hits the gas again but keeps his voice loud enough for Stiles to understand him. “My parents died when I was sixteen. My grandparents raised my sisters and I for a year. And then they died. I forgot what it was like to have people who love you and accept you as family. I have my sisters, but I only ever discuss business with Laura. And I  _never_  see Cora. Not really. She travels so much. I forgot.”

Stiles reaches out to place a hand on Derek’s leg now.

“Allison said that she’d love to come down and visit us for the holidays and I suggested we come and see her instead!  _Y_ our grandmother gave me a pocket watch. It belonged your great-grandfather and his wife gave to him on their wedding day. Then she handed me a similar watch that your great grandfather had given  _her_  on their wedding day. She told me that it was my duty to carry on the tradition! And I forgot and you...you have all that here!”

Derek takes a deep breath and adds, “And you have Lydia! I’m just, I’m screwing this up! I’m screwing this up for you--”

“You’re not screwing this up! I agreed to this. You were there, remember?”

“Your family loves you. You know that?”

“I do know that!” Stiles shouts back.

“And you’re still willing to put them through this?” Derek asks, glancing over at him for the first time since they got on the boat.

“They’re not going to find out!” Stiles shouts.

“How do you know that?” Derek demands.

“Because  _you_  said so!” Stiles yells. “Derek, stop the goddamn boat.”

“How do you know? What will your friends say? What about Grandmother Betty? I don’t want her to have a heart attack! What if she finds out and she--”

“Stop the boat!” Stiles shouts again.

Derek stands up, letting go of the controls and steering wheel. Stiles' instincts force him to jump into the seat. He’s screaming about how idiotic of a move it was, because the boat is going  _extremely_  fast when he sees the buoy. He swerves to miss it and he shouts, “Jesus christ, we almost drove straight into that! You don’t fucking  _let go_  of the steering wheel--Derek?”

 _“Stiles!”_ he hears Derek’s shout in the distance.

Derek is in the water.  _Fuck, fuck, fuck._  Today’s not Stiles’ day. He spins the boat around, shouting that he’s coming. “Swim to the buoy!”

Derek does and Stiles turns the boat off once he gets closer. Derek is shaking and Stiles realizes he’s scared.

“C’mon, give me you hand, Derek,” Stiles says. “C’mon. The water is  _way_  too cold today. You’ll freeze. Give me your hand.”

Derek hesitates but then he reaches out. Stiles yanks him up onto the boat, surprised at his own strength. He then grabs a blanket Allison and Scott kept in here for picnics. Wrapping it around Derek, he whispers, “What the hell were you thinking?”

“You were the one--” Derek says, shivering, “--who turned the boat too fast...jackass.”

Stiles smiles at him now. He’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay. “You’re the one who let go of the steering wheel, you idiot.”

Derek doesn’t have a comeback for that and Stiles shifts to wrap his arms around Derek. He rubs his hands up and down Derek’s body. Derek whispers, “I’m sorry. I’m...sorry.”

“C’mon, let’s get you warmed up. You’re okay. You’re okay.” Stiles holds on to him. He’s panting, “You’re okay. It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay. You’re alright now.”

“I panicked--” Derek says.

“It was a panic attack. I used to get them all the time as a kid.” Stiles buries his face into the crook of Derek’s neck. “Breathe with me.  _Inhale. One, two, three. Exhale. Inhale.”_

Derek reaches out to hold Stiles’ hand. He nuzzles into Stiles’.

They stay like that for a long time before Stiles finally suggests they get back to shore before it gets too dark out. Derek doesn’t argue, but he holds Stiles’ hand the entire way back.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

Stiles’ father is waiting for them at the docks. He says, “Grandma Betty must never find out about this.”

Stiles shares a look with Derek, unsure what that means. He squeezes his hand tighter and they follow his father up to the barn on the old property. Derek shuffles closer to Stiles when they enter the barn.

“Hello gentlemen,” Brett’s voice comes. Stiles freezes beside Derek.

He looks at his father and says, “What did you do?”

“You'll be fined and sent to prison if Brett finds out that you're lying about your relationship. He believes you are.  So I flew him up here,” the Sheriff says.

“Dad, why--”

“Luckily,” Brett interrupts. “Your father negotiated a deal on your behalf. This offer’s going to last twenty seconds. You’re going to make a statement admitting that this marriage is a scam or you’re going to prison. You tell the truth, you’re off the hook, and Derek is going to go back to Canada.”

Stiles squeezes Derek’s hand, without looking at him. He shakes his head. His father says, “Take the deal, Stiles.”

"I don’t think so.”

“Don’t be stupid, Stiles.”

Stiles feels Derek looking at him. Instead, he focuses on Brett. “You want your statement? Here’s your statement. I’ve been working for Derek Hale for four years. Six months ago, we started dating. We fell in love. He asked me to marry him. I said yes. I’ll see you at the wedding,  _dad.”_

With his fingers still intertwined with Derek’s, he turns and walks out.

They don’t speak until they’re safe and alone in his old bedroom. Derek sits down on the bed, and Stiles hovers near by. Derek says, “So...you sure about this?”

“Not really.”

“I appreciate everything you’ve done, Stiles--”

“You’d do the same for me, right?” Stiles asks. Derek holds his eyes, but doesn’t reply right away.

Of course, right then there’s a knock at the door. Are they part of some ridiculous rom-com movie? His grandmother says, “Hope everyone’s decent. Stiles, you need to come with me. Tomorrow is your wedding day. You have to give your bodies a rest tonight. Derek, dear, are your friends and family coming in?”

Derek nods. “Yeah, they should all be here by noon.”

“Perfect! The ceremony is to be at three in the afternoon. That’s lots of time for them to get ready and refreshed for the wedding.” Grandmother Betty smiles at them both and turns to Stiles. “Give your future husband a kiss good night. You have your whole life to share the same bed.”

She’s already walking out the door. Stiles glances at her and then back to Derek. “If I don’t go with her...”

“She’ll come right back,” Derek says, nodding.

“Yeah.”

Stiles hesitates before he asks, “See you in the morning?”

He doesn’t want to leave. He never wants to leave Derek. In fact, this entire weekend he’d found himself wanting to be closer to Derek. He only nods in response and then Stiles is walking out.

Stiles isn’t sure what to do, but he curls up in the basement on the couch. He attempts to watch a movie, but his thoughts are surrounding Derek. They’re getting  _married_  tomorrow. It’s crazy, it’s insane, and he...he’s  _excited._

He rolls over on the couch.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

The wedding looks amazing. Stiles can’t stop staring at the spot that he would be marrying Derek today. Some of Derek’s friends come in looking for him. Stiles introduces himself and explains that Derek’s still up at the house.

He likes Erica immediately. Boyd is a bit more quiet, a little reserved, but then he laughs at something Erica says and his whole face changes. They look at one another as though their whole world is right there. Stiles wonders if Derek will ever look at him like that. Of course, he won't. They're not even  _really_ getting married.

Then Derek’s sisters, Laura, and Cora, arrive with Isaac, another friend of Derek’s. Isaac seems suspicious of Stiles, and he asks, “Do you love him?”

Stiles glances back to the spot where they’ll be married. He doesn’t know a smile creeps up on his lips, but Isaac does. When Stiles turns to reply, Isaac is nodding. “You do. Good. He deserves the best.”

Laura and Cora, the only other people who know of this crazy plan, both thank him. Stiles doesn’t want their thanks though. Instead, he steps back and tells them he’s happy they could make it to the wedding.

Then he’s alone.

He’s not sure how long he’s there for, but soon enough, Scott pops up beside him. “You ready, man?”

“Yeah,” Stiles whispers. “I’m ready.”

“Let’s get you married! The girls did such a great job with everything, don’t you think?” Scott asks.

Kira wanders in at that moment and happens to hear him. She laughs. “We did an  _amazing_  job. Don’t you forget it, Stilinski.”

“I won’t, I promise. It looks incredible, Kira.” Stiles feels guilty. They worked so hard to make this wedding beautiful. And it wouldn’t even be a real marriage.

“Excuse me?” a new voice comes from the doorway. “I’m Malia. I’m Derek’s half-cousin. Laura called me and--”

“Hi, I’m Kira,” she says, stumbling towards the gorgeous woman. “Let me show you around.”

Stiles smiles as they walk away and then he glances back to where he'll be standing soon. He wonders, once more, why he’s doing this. Why he didn’t take Brett up on his deal that there wouldn’t be any consequences if they’d fessed up. Maybe it’s because after everything, he’d discovered a new side of Derek. One that he loves. 

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

It’s the girls who made the decision to have Stiles up at the altar and Derek walk down the aisle. Stiles is nervous, rubbing his hands together. Scott and Allison walk down the aisle first. Scott gives him a thumbs-up in support. Then come the rest of the wedding party. Derek’s sisters and friends had been last minute additions to the wedding party. Considering how little time they had to plan this wedding, it wasn't all that last minute.

Stiles wonders how Derek could think that he’s alone and unloved in the world. These are people who flew from all over the world to see him get married on a day’s notice. He makes a mental note to beat Derek over the head with that information because he wants Derek to be happy. Derek deserves to be happy.

Then Derek starts walking down the aisle with Grandmother Betty and Stiles inhales. This is it. This is happening. They’re getting  _married._

Stiles doesn’t glance at his father, whom he knows is glaring at him. Instead, he watches as his grandmother and Derek exchange kisses on the cheek. Grandmother Betty takes her seat and Derek steps up beside Stiles.

"You clean up good,” Stiles whispers. It earns him one of Derek’s eye rolls. He grins.

Their officiant clears his throat. “We gather here today to give thanks and to celebrate one of life’s greatest moments. We're here to give recognition to the beauty, honesty, and unselfish ways of Stiles and Derek’s true love in front of family and friends. For it is their family and friends who taught them how to love. It is--do you have a question?”

Stiles glances to see that Derek has raised his hand. He shakes his head. “No.”

Stiles whispers, “Your hand is up.”

“I have something to say,” Derek says, louder now.

“Can it wait until after?” Stiles asks. Derek shakes his head. He gives Stiles a meaningful look. “No, Derek, please don’t--”

“Thanks for coming to this wedding. And for those who planned it on such short notice. I have a confession to make.”

 _“Derek, no.”_  Stiles hisses.

“I’m Canadian. My parents had me in Canada and never bothered to make me a legal citzen of the U.S. I made the same mistake. I have an expired visa and was about to be deported. Because I didn’t want to leave this country, I forced Stiles to marry me,” Derek says. There are some gasps. His father looks angry. Brett looks surprised.

“Stop.”

“Stiles has this extraordinary work ethic,” Derek continues. He looks at the Sheriff to add, “Something that I think he learned from you. And for four years, I’ve watched him work harder than anyone else. I knew with the threat of destroying his career, he’d do just about anything. So I blackmailed him to lie to you.”

Stiles yanks on Derek’s hand, but it’s too late. It’s out. Their secret it out.

“You have a beautiful family,” Derek says. “Don’t let this come between you.”

“Derek,” Stiles whispers.

“The business deal is off.”

Then Derek tells Brett that he’s getting a ride to the airport with him. And he’s fleeing the barn. Stiles tries to rush after him, but his family stands in his way. Scott looks so disappointed. It’s the Sheriff who asks, “What were you thinking?”

“I don’t know,” Stiles answers.

“Why did you lie to us?” Allison asks, looking at Stiles with bright eyes.

“I had to. I just--” Stiles pushes through them. He can't imagine what Derek's friends are feeling right now. Never in a million years would they have seen  _that_  coming. Derek's not the deceiving-type. Stiles only catches a glimpse of the horror on Laura and Cora's faces.

Stiles wonders how his family is going to survive this. Then he hears Erica tell Boyd and Issac that Derek mustn't have realized he was actually in love with Stiles when he'd come up with this insane plan. Stiles' heart stops. Boyd agrees, and Isaac says something about Derek being a complete idiot  _again._

Stiles looks back at his family.

“I have to go. I’m sorry.”

He’s running but he can’t run fast enough. He barges into his room and all that’s sitting on the bed are four objects to let him know that Derek is gone. The first two are the watches that his grandmother had given him. The third is a manuscript and the fourth is a letter.

He picks up the letter with trembling hands.

 

_You were right, Stiles. This book is special. If I had published it, I would’ve lost you as an assistant. I wasn’t ready for it. But I’ll make sure that we buy this book before I leave. I hope you have an amazing life. You deserve it. Go find Lydia._

_Derek._

 

That’s it? That’s it. After everything they’ve been through, and he leaves a shitty note?

Stiles tosses the note onto the ground. He jumps when he realizes someone’s entered his bedroom. It’s not Derek. It’s Lydia. Why the hell would Derek had told him to find Lydia?

“Well, that was crazy.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it was,” Stiles mutters.

“Are you okay?” Lydia asks.

“Yeah.” He pauses. “No. You see, the problem is that this man is a gigantic pain in my ass. First, there’s this whole leaving thing. I understand that. It’s a sham wedding. It's kind of stressful. But then he goes ahead and leaves this note. Because he doesn't have the decency, the humanity, to do it to my face. Four years. Four years, I worked with this emotionless brick. Never once has he had a nice thing to say, and then he goes ahead and he writes this crap!”

"What are you going to do?” Lydia asks him.

“I don’t know. I...don’t know.”

“Go  _get him,_  Stiles. Get him now before it’s too late.”

Stiles nods and kisses her cheek as he rushes pass her. He jogs down the stairs and he’s outside a second later. His family is around, all confused and unsure.

His father grabs his arm as he passes him. “What are you doing?”

“I have to talk to him!”

“Why? Why would you do that?” the Sheriff asks.

“Stop it! Both of you!” Allison shouts.

“It has nothing to do with you. I’m not asking you permission,” Stiles yells.

“Betty? Bett--someone call a doctor!” Allison screams.

Instantly, Stiles and his father rush over. “Grandma? Grandma, what’s wrong?”

“I think I’m having a heart attack,” she says as she gets down onto the ground.

Everything speeds by Stiles in a blur, and then he’s in a private plane with his father, Allison, and Scott. His grandmother lies on a gurney, about to remove her oxygen mask.

“You two need stop fighting,” she says. “You’ll never see eye to eye, but you’re family. And John, you promise me you’ll stand by Stiles even if you don’t agree with him.”

“Promise, Mom,  _promise,”_  John whispers.

“And you’ll work harder to be part of this family, Stiles.”

“Promise.”

“Alright. Then the spirits can take me,” his grandmother says, with a smile. She closes her eyes and then a moment later sits up. “Well, I guess they weren’t ready for me.”

“Were you  _faking_  a heart attack?” Allison asks.

“Yes. Now, Larry, take us to the airport!”

“I’m not authorized to do that, ma’am.”

“I’ll call your mother,” Grandma Betty says.

Just like that, they’re off to the airport and things are sure looking a hell of a lot better for Stiles.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

  
 

“Why? Why? No, no, no!” Stiles shouts, as the plane Derek is on takes off. “Why? I hate everything!”

“What’s going on?” John asks.

“Derek’s on that plane,” Allison tells him.

“Derek? Why would he care if Derek’s on the plane?” John asks.

“Because he loves him, doofus. And Derek loves Stiles back.”

“How do we know this?” John asks.

“He wouldn’t have left if he didn’t,” Grandma Betty says. She claps her hands together. “Alright, everyone! Get into action. Our boy has a plane to catch!”

Stiles hugs his family goodbye before he’s getting onto a plane. It’s not a direct flight. In fact, there are two layovers on the way. But it’s the quickest way to get home to Derek from here.

Before he leaves his family though, he hugs them and promises to visit more. No matter the outcome with Derek. His father pulls him in tight and whispers, “I’m sorry, son. I didn’t know you loved him. Fight for him with everything you’ve got. Please come home soon. For a visit this time. No pressure to stay.”

“I love you too, dad. I'll visit,” Stiles whispers.

Now he can’t stop tapping his foot. He needs to  _be_  with Derek already.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

  
  


Stiles knew he’d been out of shape. He just didn’t know how much until he finally shows up at work, out of breathe, and desperate. He finds Derek telling Danny where to ship the rest of his stuff from his office.

“Um, Mr. Hale, behind you?” Danny prompts.

Derek turns and Stiles tries inhaling. “Stiles? What are you doing here?”

“I need to talk to you,” Stiles pants.

“I don’t have time to talk, Stiles. I have a plane to catch.” Derek turns back to Danny to continue giving him instructions.

“Derek.  _Derek! Stop talking!”_ Stiles shouts. “I have something to say. It’ll take a minute. Listen to me.”

“Fine. What?”

“Four days ago, I loathed you. I thought of ways I could kill you - throw you off a cliff or poison you. I used to drive my family crazy with how much I ranted about how you are _such_ an asshole.”

"That’s nice. Are you done?”

“I told you to stop talking,” Stiles says, exasperated. “Then we had this little adventure in Beacon Hills and things changed. Fuck, everything changed when we kissed. When you drove me crazy this weekend, it was because I wanted to strip you naked. When you were upset because you felt included in my family. You _are_ part of my family now.”

“Stiles--”

“I didn’t realize any of this until I was standing alone in a barn without a husband. Now, you can imagine my disappointment when it dawned on me that the man I love is about to be kicked out of the country.”

Stiles steps forward and says, “So, Derek. Marry me. Because I’d liked to date you.”

"You don’t mean that,” Derek says. “The thing is there’s a reason I’ve been alone all this time. I’m comfortable this way, and I think it’d be easier if we forgot everything that happened and I just left.”

“You’re right. It would be easier.” Stiles doesn’t budge though. He didn’t come all this way to just give up.

“I’m scared.”

“Me too,” Stiles admits.

He steps forward this time and he pulls Derek into a kiss. Stiles doesn’t care that their coworkers are standing around them. He deepens the kiss and pulls Derek even closer towards him. Derek’s hands wander up and down Stiles’ back.

They’re both breathless when they pull away from each other.

“Aren’t you supposed to get down on your knee or something?” Derek asks, smiling.

“I’m going to take that as a yes,” Stiles whispers.

“Oh. Okay. Yes,” Derek says, before leaning in for another kiss. Danny hollers from behind them.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

They’re back in Brett’s office the following week. Brett says, “You two are engaged again.”

“Yes,” they say together.

“For real this time?”

“Yes.”

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

 

“Alright, Stiles, first question. When did you start dating?” Brett asks.

“Last week.”

“How’s it going?”

“It’s been amazing.”

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

They're married in the barn in Beacon Hills a few weeks later. All of Stiles' and Derek's families and friends join them to watch. Allison goes into labour and steals their thunder. Not that either of them mind. They're  _finally_ together. They spend four minutes at their reception for their first dance as husband and husband.

Then they spend the rest of their wedding night sneaking off to have sex in empty rooms around the hospital while they wait for Allison and Scott to have their baby girl.

The next time they visit Beacon Hills, it's for Christmas. Derek now sends all of his workers home for two weeks for the holidays. Paid. No exceptions. Laura swears their company can afford it. Cora even joins them with Erica, Boyd, and Isaac in tow. Kira invites Malia to come for the holidays. It's a busy few weeks, but Stiles and Derek wouldn't trade it for anything.

The Sheriff retires to let Lydia finally take over the position. Stiles buys her a cake to congratulate her, and Derek gets her flowers. She hugs them both.

“Stiles, can you get me another beer?” Cora asks one evening. The Stilinski house is filled with people who have come to form one big family. Stiles turns from his conversation with Aiden, Lydia's new boyfriend (who, spoiler alert: he does  _not_ like at all), and looks at Cora who is sprawled out on the couch behind him.

“Get it yourself, lazy butt!” Stiles tells her, laughing. He's come to think of Cora and Laura as his sisters now, and feels quite comfortable telling them what he thinks. They feel the same way about him, and Stiles isn't quite sure that's a good thing.

“Hey, if it wasn't for me, you'd never been forced into a fake relationship with my brother, thus falling madly and wildly in love with him. So, what about that beer?”

Stiles gets her a beer.

 

****♚♞♚♞♚♞**  **

**Author's Note:**

> For those of you who have been following me for the past year or so, I love you deeply. I've been in a pretty unhappy place lately and I still haven't quite figured out how to get out of this funk. So any words of encouragement would be greatly appreciated, because I love writing and writing makes me happy and I write more when you guys get excited. Of course, if you hated this or didn't like it or thought it was dull as hell, well, don't feel obligated, okay?
> 
> For anyone new to my writing, hello! Welcome to my messy world. You can find me on [tumblr.](http://www.fox.erica.tumblr.com) If you're following my blog because of this comment, come say hi! **Sign up to receive emails for my writing (on ao3 and tumblr fics)[here.](http://www.foxerica.tumblr.com/mail)**


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